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A woman raped when she was a teenager in the 80s finally got justice today when the man responsible was jailed for eight years.

The woman, who cannot be named for legal reasons, sat in Reading Crown Court to see the face of her attacker 26 years on.

Jimmy Dyer, also known as Gary Dyer, of St George’s Street, Northampton, admitted the rape charge in September.

On October 10, 1988, an 18-year-old woman travelled in a taxi following a night out in Reading with friends.

The taxi driver took a wrong turn so the woman asked to be dropped off, intending to walk the rest of the way home.

She was dropped off in St Michael's Road, Tilehurst, and when she reached the corner of Heathfield Avenue, Dyer, 54, put his arm around her neck and took her into an overgrown front garden. There he punched her in the stomach and told her to lie down before raping her, the court was told.

Summing up the case, Judge Johannah Cutts, QC, said: “Having took what you wanted you walked away.

“This was a stranger raping a vulnerable 18-year-old girl. What you did had a lasting and profound impact on her life.

“It is difficult to read this [victim impact] statement and not be moved by the impact your behaviour has had on her.”

Dyer had 13 previous convictions for sexual offences dating back to 1992.

They included indecent exposure and sex with a 15-year-old girl.

In 1992 Dyer was convicted of raping a 16-year-old girl and jailed for seven years.

Between 2005 and 2012 he was treated in psychiatric hospitals, including Broadmoor in Crowthorne, after he was diagnosed with dissocial personality disorder.

Alesdair (corr) King, defending, said Dyer had engaged with treatment for a mental health condition since 2007.

He continued; “At the time of this offence and indeed other sexual offences, Mr Dyer had no idea he was unwell.”

He said at that time Dyer was solely focused on his own gratification but he was now “truly ashamed” by his actions.

However Dyer has no recollection of the specific incident in 1988, explained Mr King.

Mr King asked the judge to "balance punishment against rehabilitation”.

Jailing Dyer for eight years, Judge Cutts commended the victim and said she “hoped she can find some way to move forward with her life”.

Dyer was arrested on June 11 after advances in DNA techniques led Thames Valley Police’s Major Crime Investigation Review Team to him.

Speaking following the conviction, Principal Investigator Pete Beirne, said: “The events of the evening of 10 October 1988 will never leave the victim. This rape by a stranger had a deep and lasting impact upon a young woman.

“Dyer has a history of carrying out sexual offences and his imprisonment today means he will face justice for this crime.

“While the sentence will not undo the events of that evening 26 years ago, nor will it make the victim forget them, I hope it will provide her with some comfort that the man responsible has finally been arrested and convicted.

“The Major Crime Investigation Review Team was able to use advances in DNA techniques to enable us to identify Dyer as the offender many years after the offence took place.

“We are using these techniques in other historic cases that we are working on and are confident that we will have further successes in the future.”

Adrian Foster, Chief Crown Prosecutor of Thames and Chiltern Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), said: “This case highlights the commitment of the police and CPS to prosecute cases involving violence against women. The outcome also demonstrates to people who commit such offences that they are never safe from justice and that our determination to ensure that justice is done remains undimmed, even years after offences are committed.

“This prosecution would not have been possible without the thorough re-investigation of the case by the Thames Valley Police MCRT, scientific developments, and the courage of the victim who was willing to support proceedings.

“Time has not diminished the effect this incident has had on the victim’s life. She has waited 26 long years for today’s result. I hope that today’s sentence will offer some comfort to her after all these years. Our thoughts are very much with her at this time.”